MOBILE, Ala. -- With the Giants in need of a strong draft seemingly more than ever, it would have been an inopportune time to lose one of their top personnel executives. Fortunately for the Giants, vice president of player evaluation Marc Ross will remain with the organization.

Ross, 41, was a finalist for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' general manager position. The job went to Arizona Cardinals executive Jason Licht.

One team’s loss is another team’s gain. The Giants keep Ross, a well-regarded personnel evaluator who is heavily involved in college scouting, for at least another year. He was promoted to VP of player evaluation last year, where his responsibilities include running the team’s scouting department and draft.

After several poor drafts, the Giants’ 2013 class looks promising with offensive tackle Justin Pugh, defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins and defensive end Damontre Moore the top three picks.

Losing Ross at this time of the year would have been tricky. The Giants’ brass is in the middle of the draft process as they spend the week in Mobile evaluating prospects at the Senior Bowl.

Ross has drawn a lot of interest in recent years. He was interviewed for several general manager positions in the past, and was also in the running for the Dolphins’ general manager job, even though he never actually interviewed for the position.

The Princeton graduate has been with the Giants for the past seven years. He previously spent some time with the Eagles and Bills.

Ross is known to be an independent thinker who isn’t afraid to make tough decisions.

"He'll argue with you and that's good. I want guys that feel something and do it. He doesn't politicize anything," former Eagles director of operations manager Tom Modrak told The Star-Ledger in a 2008 interview. Modrak gave Ross his first NFL job in 1997.

"If the buzz is going one way and he doesn't feel it, he doesn't go that way. That's a quality that's special in this business."